Growing Tomatoes in Containers- Why to do it?

One of the biggest reasons that people convince themselves that gardening isn’t for them is because they’re lacking a spacious yard. However, due to a trend where people have started growing tomatoes in containers inside their homes, that is no longer a problem! For example, growing tomatoes in containers is incredibly easy, as long as you have sunlight! Growing tomatoes in containers isn’t only an option for people who don’t have room to expand on an outdoor garden- it’s for anybody who wants fresh vegetables! Growing tomatoes in containers is much more convenient than the alternative of growing them outside, and also allows for much more flexibility and control over the growing situations.

Growing tomatoes in containers really isn’t too different than growing them in the garden outside. Many of the same precautions are taken when you’re growing tomatoes indoors as when you’re growing them outside. Transplanting is a process that is involved in both indoor and outdoor growing of tomatoes. There is also the option of growing tomatoes in containers indoors, and then moving them to an outdoor garden when they are strong and mature enough to survive a transplant. When you’re transplanting between various size containers, make sure that you bury the plant stem as deep as possible. The more of the stem that is buried, the more surface area there will be for roots to grow from, creating a great base foundation for when you’re growing tomatoes in containers.

The benefits of growing tomatoes in containers

One of the biggest benefits of growing tomatoes in containers is that you have 100% control over the growing conditions, whereas nature is in control when you’re gardening outside. When you grow tomatoes in containers, you are able to experiment with a large variety of different growing mediums, such as going completely soiless, organic, or even mixing a few different types. Once you know what works best for your plants, you are able to replicate those results over and over again, year round! The general mixture that most people use when they are growing tomatoes in containers is around 40% peat moss, 40% compost, and then 20% perlite.

While there are certainly benefits to growing tomatoes in containers, as with everything, there are disadvantages. Because the roots of your tomato plant is constrained to a single container, and not able to spread out like they do in regular gardens, they need to be watered and fertilized much more frequently. During the summer, you may need to water your plants up to two times a day to prevent them from wilting and growing unhealthy. However, this does depend on different variables, such as how large the container you’re growing your vegetables in actually is. When you’re growing tomatoes in containers, it’s important to remember that they need quite a bit of a water to grow big and healthy, so making sure that they’re getting enough nourishment is imperative in their growth.

One way to quickly eliminate the disadvantage of persistent and regular watering when you’re growing tomatoes in containers is to intall an automated drip irrigator to water your plants for you. This process is relatively inexpensive, and a pretty easy do-it-yourself project. Depending on how dedicated you are to growing tomatoes in containers and eliminating part of the work, it could be an excellent investment that will pay off in time.

Things you should know about growing tomatoes in containers

As we’ve talked about in some of our other articles, mulching is an incredibly important aspect of gardening, even if you’re growing tomatoes in containers. It may seem like an unnecessary step to take, but it helps with retaining water in the soil and reduces the amount of evaporation that takes place. It also helps the general appearance of your plants, and is just another thing that will show great benefits in time when growing tomatoes in containers.

Using more fertilizers once your plants have started to flower is never a bad thing, as doing so will help to jump start the process of fruit formation and will in turn result in a bigger crop. However, you should make a point to keep the rate of fertilization constant. You should also be sure to harvest your crop as soon as the tomatoes are ripe.

Now that you know everything you’ll ever need to know about growing tomatoes in containers, you’ll need some seeds! Todd’s Seeds has an excellent selection of both bulk and regular sized seed packets with a few different varieties of tomatoes. Good luck with your seed growing endeavors!